To: Dr. Louis Dale, UAB VP of Equity & Diversity
Remove UAB's Columbus Statue
Tear Down the University of Alabama at Birmingham's Columbus Statue.
Why is this important?
The students of the American Indian Association at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) would like to call attention to the Christopher Columbus statue on the campus of UAB. In school, we are taught that he was the brave hero who discovered the Americas, but the legacy of Columbus is not one to be celebrated. In reality, the effects of Columbus's colonization severely harmed the Native American population and led to the genocide of millions. This led to historical discrimination and mistreatment of Indigenous Peoples that still remains today. Columbus is not a representative of diversity, but he is instead a representative of white-washed American history.
The Columbus statue is located on the terrace of the UAB Smolian International House. UAB is one of the top ranking universities in the United States of America for diversity and this statue represents neither UAB nor our current diversity.
We suggest that the UAB administrators, faculty, students, and staff remove this statue and replace it with a statue that better represents the diversity of our campus! Please sign your name and list your zip code on our petition, which we will present to the UAB administrators, faculty, students, and staff.
The Columbus statue is located on the terrace of the UAB Smolian International House. UAB is one of the top ranking universities in the United States of America for diversity and this statue represents neither UAB nor our current diversity.
We suggest that the UAB administrators, faculty, students, and staff remove this statue and replace it with a statue that better represents the diversity of our campus! Please sign your name and list your zip code on our petition, which we will present to the UAB administrators, faculty, students, and staff.